THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 14, 1996 TAG: 9609140566
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JAMES C. BLACK, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 63 lines
John Quinerly's classmates just had to acknowledge his presence Thursday evening.
``What's up `Q,' '' several curious Norfolk State students said while the running back was interviewed in the cafeteria. But Quinerly paid little attention to the adulation. He just stood on the stairs and took care of business like he has on the football field.
``Right now, he's our running game,'' said coach Darnell Moore, whose Spartans (1-1) host Livingstone College at Foreman Field tonight at 7 p.m.
``And with decent blocking, he's a dependable back who can catch the ball out of the backfield.''
Quinerly has run for 116 yards in each of the Spartans first two games on a combined 50 carries. The Maury High graduate is the first Spartan to reach the century mark on the ground in consecutive games during Moore's tenure.
But don't tell the senior he's special. He's just doing his job.
``If I get the ball 20 times a game, I can't get less than 100 yards,'' Quinerly said with a gold No. 11 charm, his jersey number, dangling from his neck. ``I can't help the team if I get the ball 20 times a game and not get 100 yards.''
And just when did running become so important at Norfolk State?
``That's part of what we wanted to do coming into the season, take some pressure off the young offensive line and the quarterback,'' Moore said. ``And if we do that, people have to be concerned. Our play action passes have been there because of the running game.''
And it's a ground attack that features one man - ``Q.''
The Spartans anticipated getting rushing yardage from two main sources this fall - Quinerly and fullback Christopher Williams. However, Williams went down with a knee injury prior to the season-opener against Virginia State and will miss the season.
So far, Quinerly's production has Moore comfortable. Tailback George Spencer and fullback Deangelo Hodges have carried the ball just five times for 12 yards. If Quinerly is to reach his personal goals this season, Hodges and Spencer will have very few opportunities.
The 5-foot-8, 190-pound Quinerly hopes to get 400 yards in receiving and score 20 touchdowns. Oh, by the way, that's in addition to the 1,500 yards he hopes to amass on the ground. He figures achieving these goals would put Norfolk State in position to win the CIAA.
Getting the 1,500 yards could be a stretch. Only two Norfolk State players have achieved 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Tony Johnson broke the school record with 1,310 yards in 1984. LaRue Harrington topped 1,000 three times in the '70s.
Quinerly gained 933 yards in his first three seasons.
Even as a receiver, Quinerly has received more opportunities than most of the other Spartans.
Quinerly has caught six passes this year, three fewer than best friend Darius Blount but one more than all-conference tight end Ronald Boone.
``He's basically a receiver,'' Boone said. ``He catches the same amount of passes as a receiver - he just comes out of the backfield.''
And this season, he's stepped out of the background and into the forefront. ILLUSTRATION: MIKE HEFFNER
The Virginian-Pilot
John Quinerly, who gained 933 yards in his first three seasons, has
232 in two games this year. by CNB